"As a woman I have no country.... As a woman my country is the whole world." -Virgina Woolf

Monday, August 29, 2011

The Spectrum.

The last time I visited the U.S., I called someone "sir" in English for the first time ever.

He helped me get my bag down from the overhead compartment, and I said, "Thank you, sir." It just slipped out. It was weird. I'm from California: we address groups of elderly ladies as "you guys." We call our parents "dude." We don't say "sir."

It made me realize how much I've acculturated to my adopted country: the effusive politeness, especially when dealing with an elder, has become second nature. I don't have the entire script down, yet, though: a real, old-school resident of Tlacochahuaya can draw out a simple "thanks" into a ten-minute exchange.

It's that way with a lot of things: I'm stuck somewhere in the middle, no longer entirely comfortable in my home culture, but nowhere near being Mexican. Look! I made you a poorly formatted chart!